The United States and other international donors are providing humanitarian assistance to Kyrgyzstan, as the Obama administration works on a coordinated international response to address the ongoing ethnic violence in the country.

Statement by the Delegation of the United States of America

Introduction of Draft Resolution HRC/14/L.2, “Technical assistance and cooperation on human rights for the Kyrgyz Republic”

UN Human Rights Council 14th Session

Geneva, June 18, 2010

Thank you, Mr. President.

The United States, like many members of this body, is deeply concerned by and deplores the recent inter-ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan and the tragic loss of life there. We believe that this draft resolution, HRC/14/L.2, reflects this concern we all share. As events on the ground have unfolded during this session, we have worked with the Government of Kyrgyzstan on this important matter and are pleased to be able to introduce a resolution today that we believe will make a constructive contribution going forward. We welcome the Kyrgyz government’s commitment, as evidenced by their co-sponsorship of this resolution, to take all necessary steps to respond to this tragedy.

The resolution condemns the violence in Osh and Jalalabad; calls for the Government of Kyrgyzstan to uphold its human rights commitments and conduct a full and transparent investigation that holds perpetrators responsible for loss of life; urges all actors to refrain from violence, and requests the international community to provide the support and assistance that’s most critical right now.

We sincerely thank all delegations for their cooperation and collaboration during the elaboration of this text, which was made additionally complex due to the current situation in the country. We hope this resolution receives strong support from the Human Rights Council and the international community.

The Secretariat has circulated copies of oral amendments to the tabled text, so I will not read each one individually. Much of the text is self-explanatory, but a few points of note are the following:

• PP 6 considers the context of the change in government that took place in April, 2010;
• PP 7 recognizes the tragic loss of life that resulted from protests during the change in government;
• PP 8 expresses deep concern about the recent inter-ethnic violence;
• OP1condemns the violence surrounding the change of government and the violence in Osh and Jalalabad;
• OP2 calls upon the government to conduct a full and transparent investigation that holds perpetrators accountable for the loss of life in relation to the events of April 7 and during the recent inter-ethnic violence.
• OP4 urges the government to promote inter-ethnic reconciliation and OP5 welcomes the government’s commitment to implement accepted UPR recommendations;
• On OP7 and OP8, we are encouraged by the Kyrgyz Republic’s stated commitment to promote democracy and advance human rights as it prepares its new constitution;
• OP9 and OP10 seek to draw substantial assistance and access to resources for the government over the course of the next year.

We look forward to adoption of this resolution by consensus and again thank all delegations for their patience and cooperation in this process

Thank you, Mr. President

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